There are two important reasons for businesses to focus on social media right now. One is that people are stuck at home and looking for ways to pass the time, which means turning to social media for entertainment and connection. The other is that people are devouring information at an incredible rate, and you need to be part of that equation if you want to remain visible and relevant as the COVID-19 crisis progresses.
That said, how you approach social media is about more than just getting content and ads in front of your target audience. The way you present information during a time of crisis can either elevate your brand or impact your reputation in a negative way. How can you make sure that your social media efforts are having the desired effect during the coronavirus pandemic?
Strike a Balance
To acknowledge or not to acknowledge? This is the difficult question businesses are faced with as they try to pivot their social media strategy. Should you simply continue with your regular posts and campaigns as if nothing has changed, or do you need to make COVID-19 the focus of your social media profiles?
To be clear, these aren’t your only two options, and either extreme is likely to put you in hot water with your audience. The first approach will read as incredibly tone deaf, while the latter could turn off followers already bogged down with non-stop coronavirus news.
Shooting for somewhere in the middle is the way to go. You can’t avoid the fact that everything has changed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and your strategy has to change to account for that. If and when you do post about the coronavirus, try to do so in a way that is sensitive and adds value for followers, and make sure to intersperse such posts with items that focus on other topics relevant to your audience.
Consider Your Audience POV
If you’ve been engaged in SEO, online advertising, and social media for a while now, there’s a good chance you know your demographics inside and out. This can help you to answer a few very pertinent questions. How have they been impacted by coronavirus? What are their fears, concerns, pain points, and problems related to their current situation? How can your social media strategies improve their lives right now?
As a business, you naturally have challenges and goals of your own, but your average follower doesn’t care – they are concerned about their own problems, and rightly so. If you want to create a meaningful and satisfying dialogue with them, you need to see what you’re posting from their point of view, and examine it through the lens of their current situation, so you can craft a customer experience that your audience finds engaging and sincere.
Share Your Experience
Personal connections have never been more important than they are right now, even if they can only happen virtually. By sharing your own experience with posts that highlight how your company and employees are weathering the storm, you have the chance to connect with followers on a very personal level and add a human face to your brand identity that lends you authenticity with your audience. Just make sure to commiserate rather than adopting a “poor me” narrative.
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